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Since 1973, abortion has been legal in the United States under the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision. Yet in Texas, abortion has been consistently challenged, where additional restrictions have been placed on clinics, health care providers and women seeking abortions. | Since 1973, abortion has been legal in the United States under the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision. Yet in Texas, abortion has been consistently challenged, where additional restrictions have been placed on clinics, health care providers and women seeking abortions. | ||
One of the most controversial laws came in 2013, when Texas Governor Rick Perry signed House Bill 2 (known as "HB 2"), an anti-abortion bill. According to this law, "Abortion doctors must have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic | One of the most controversial laws came in 2013, when Texas Governor Rick Perry signed House Bill 2 (known as "HB 2"), an anti-abortion bill. According to this law, "Abortion doctors must have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic."<ref>[http://fundtexaschoice.org/what-is-hb2/ What is HB2?]</ref> Furthermore, abortion clinics must align by standards meant for ambulatory surgical centers, which have strict regulations on buildings, equipment and staff. Because nearly all abortion doctors have no admitting privileges to such hospitals in Texas, and because the hospitals have no incentives to provide such access, this forced many clinics to close down. Furthermore, because most abortion clinics don't have the funding or resources to abide by ambulatory standards, this also forced abortion clinics to close down. In the years following HB 2, Texas went from having 40 abortion clinics to only 19.<ref>[https://www.texastribune.org/2016/06/28/texas-abortion-clinics-have-closed-hb2-passed-2013/ Texas Abortion Clinics That Have Closed Since 2013]</ref> This lead to a situation in which many Texas women did not have access to abortion clinics in their areas, and they were forced to travel very long distances, oftentimes out of state, to obtain abortions. | ||
In June 2016, the United States Supreme Court struck down HB 2 in a 5-3 decision. As written by Justice Stephen G. Breyer, “We conclude that neither of these provisions offers medical benefits sufficient to justify the burdens upon access that each imposes. Each places a substantial obstacle in the path of women seeking a previability abortion, each constitutes an undue burden on abortion access, and each violates the federal Constitution.”<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/28/us/supreme-court-texas-abortion.html?_r=0 Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Restrictions | In June 2016, the United States Supreme Court struck down HB 2 in a 5-3 decision. As written by Justice Stephen G. Breyer, “We conclude that neither of these provisions offers medical benefits sufficient to justify the burdens upon access that each imposes. Each places a substantial obstacle in the path of women seeking a previability abortion, each constitutes an undue burden on abortion access, and each violates the federal Constitution.”<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/28/us/supreme-court-texas-abortion.html?_r=0 Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Restrictions | ||